Fontaine’s Auction Gallery will feature sparkling diamond jewelry, well-crafted clocks and furniture, intricately decorated accessories and much more at its sale on Saturday, June 8, 2019 at 11 AM. Previews auction week will be Friday, 10 AM to 5 PM, and Saturday, 8 AM to 11 AM.

This auction will include 350 lots of antiques and fine art, including Victorian, early American and Midcentury furniture and accessories; 19th and 20th century lighting; gold and diamond jewelry, fine silver, 19th and 20th century paintings, art glass and cameo glass, Asian and Russian items, American art pottery, bronze statuary, porcelains, country store and advertising items, clocks, Lionel train sets, plus related accessories. The auction presents the contents of several fine Northeast estates. 

“The auction ranges from fine art and antiques to elegant objects from such designer names as Tiffany and R.J. Horner and it even boasts a snazzy fire-red Corvette,” said John Fontaine, owner of Fontaine’s Auction Gallery.

The auction will have lots of sparkle and choice pieces crossing the block early on with a 173-piece Reed & Barton Francis I sterling silver flatware service ($3,000-5,000) whose stout teapot and covered sugar have hand-chased filigree with large fruit filled cornucopia and ribbons flanking the medallions on the front and back; a platinum and diamond wedding ring and band ($2,500-3,500) set with a 1.32-carat round diamond in 14K white gold, and two platinum, gold and diamond brooches ($1,000-1,500).

By an hour in, the auction will be revving up with a fine example of a classic car, a 1995 Chevrolet Corvette coupe ($7,000-10,000) finished in “Torch Red” paint and runs the gamut from elaborately-decorated decorative items to clean lines and traditional pieces.

Traditional antiques and items embodying good design will dominate the auction action, including a Tiffany Acorn shade on a Tiffany & Co. bronze base ($3,000-5,000) with Aesthetic floral panels, 14 by 23 inches; and a monumental figural grandfather clock ($2,500-3,500) with dial signed “New England Clock, Farmington, Conn. U.S.A.,” gilt brass Roman hour numerals and sub seconds dial, late 20th century, 56 by 91 inches.

Among the most elaborately-decorated items in the auction is a Russian silver gilt and enamel tea cup holder ($2,500-3,500) in multi-colored enamel and plique-a-jour and 84 standard silver (875/1000 silver), 4 inches tall. Another Russian lot crossing the block is a Soviet porcelain charger commemorating Stalin’s 70th birthday ($2,000-3,000) centered by a profile portrait of Joseph Stalin, 13-1/2-inch diameter.

The furniture category is led by an R.J. Horner mahogany two-door bookcase ($3,500-5,000) having an overhanging cornice top with swirling filigree, winged horse heads and central urn carved in the frieze, 63-1/2 by 57 by 18 inches, and a massive 12-foot carved oak console table ($2,000-3,000) with six heavy ornate leg supports, acanthus carving, and turned and carved finials with cartouche shields at the bottom, 148-1/2 by 36 by 25 inches.

Fans of bronze accessories will find a French brass hour repeater carriage clock with alarm ($1,500-2,500) and a 2-inch brass dial signed by the retailer “Theodore B. Starr, New York,” 6-3/4 by 4-1/4 by 3-3/4 inches, and a 20th century musical singing bird automaton music box ($1,200-1,500) with a fire-gilded relief bronze case having frolicking putti on all sides, an oval enamel painting on the lid of a nude woman lying down and an oval clock on the front, 4 by 2-1/4 by 3-1/2 inches. 

Rounding out the auction are a lot of four vintage posters ($1,000-1,500), including a circus carousel poster and show and movie posters, and a pair of Genaro Alvarez mosaic side tables ($1,200-1,500), triangular, with three large and colorful butterflies amid mosaics, 23-1/2 by 14 by 20-1/2 inches.

Fontaine’s Auction Gallery is the oldest operating auction gallery in Western Massachusetts. It has earned the trust of collectors, investors and gallery owners worldwide. All cataloged lots receive nationwide exposure to the firm’s database of more than 20,000 select buyers. Fontaine’s Auction Gallery has been voted “Best Antique Auction Gallery” eight times by the public.

Fontaine’s Auction Gallery is actively seeking quality items, to include furniture, lighting, clocks and watches, paintings, porcelains, bronze and marble statuary, Asian items, art glass and cameo glass, Russian objects, silver, musical, coin-op, advertising, toys, banks, gaming and carousel items for future sales. Consignments are currently being accepted for all the upcoming auctions.

The firm will buy outright or accept on consignment fine antiques, collections or entire estates. John Fontaine can be reached at (413) 448-8922 or by emailing info@fontainesauction.com. Fontaine’s Auction Gallery is located at 1485 West Housatonic Street (Route 20), Pittsfield, Massachusetts.

For more information about the company and the upcoming auction schedule, visit fontainesauction.com. Updates are posted frequently.